Dancing On Air
by Daisy Snapdragon
Summary: Aang and the gang decide to take a mini vacation to an island festival in the Earth Kingdom. Meanwhile, Zuko has been dragged to the same one by his uncle. There, they meet a girl that might make Aang question if he really is the last airbender. ZukoXoc
1. Malia Island

Chapter 1 Malia Island

**AN: This is my first ever fanfic so please don't be too harsh on reviews. I would really appreciate some feedback before continuing by the way. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of the characters or ideas associated with it. I do, however, own Allete and her personality because I came up with her all by myself. :)**

The Avatar and his friends sat in Appa's saddle, all watching the ground below them for a certain piece of land. They had just been informed that the small island of Malia was having their annual festival, and apparently this festival was bigger than the island itself. The group had been lacking in the fun department for quite a while. So when the gang found a sign for the popular attraction, they were all too happy to take a break and see what it was all about. Of course Katara was a little harder to convince. She had put up a few arguments about money and time but she too was convinced this was a good idea in a matter of minutes.

"This is taking forever," Sokka groaned and rolled over from where he had been laying with his chin rested on the side of the saddle. "I had no idea the island was this far away."

Katara sighed. She had to agree, this was taking longer than she had expected. "Aang, are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Of course I do! The map says it's just a bit farther and then…" Aang paused to look hard at something below them. "There it is!! I think," Aang pointed to a small piece of ground beneath them. He grabbed Appa's reigns and steered him down to the island. Appa touched down on a big, open piece of land right outside the city walls. It was kind of disconcerting to see such peace and quiet of the farmland outside of the city sitting only a few feet away from a wild and chaotic festival.

The gang, including Momo, hopped off of Appa's back. Aang gave the giant, furry creature instructions, patted him on the head, and ran to catch up with the rest of the group.

"Uncle, do we have to go to the stupid carnival?" a certain agitated prince whined and followed his uncle onto the ferry headed to the small island. Iroh had insisted they go to have a little fun since their journey after the battle at the North Pole. Running into Azula had certainly been all but fun, and it only made Zuko want to capture the Avatar even more. He couldn't do that at a festival.

"Yes, Zuko, we have to go. Trust me; you're going to thank me for this later." Iroh climbed on board the ship. Zuko rolled his eyes behind the old man's back. It was true, Zuko usually was thankful his uncle dragged him off to do things like this (even though he would never tell him). Maybe he would find something to interest him since he wasn't about to ride any of those rickety carnival rides, although his uncle would probably find a way to get him on at least one. The ferry began its short journey to the island. In fact, the ride was almost over as soon as it began, which didn't give the prince much time to think. But in the short time he had he pondered over the events that had led up to his current predicament.

Once the boat had arrived and docked at the island, Zuko and his uncle followed the large group of excited tourists to the city gates. _Well, they were more like fences since the village wasn't very big at all, but they served their purpose_, Zuko concluded. Actually, he was surprised that the "gates" didn't get trampled by the crowd. There was quite a big group of people. To his surprise he caught, out of the corner of his eye, a flash of color; something that stood out from the rest of the neutrals in the crowd. He remembered his uncle telling him about relaxing and forgetting about the Avatar this weekend, and he stopped for just a second, thinking. _Screw it._ He thought. _If the Avatar is here, he's mine._


	2. The Carnival Ballerina

Chapter 2: The Carnival Ballerina

This is my way of combining my two loves: ballet and Avatar. Again tell me what you think.

Disclaimer: I did this last time. It pains me enough as it is. I refuse to say it again.

"I would like to go see the ballet performance in about an hour, but apart from that I'm up for anything," Katara put down the activities schedule to look at her brother and friend.

"No way am I going to go watch some girls in big fluffy costumes twirl around. That's stupid." Sokka shook his head. What, did Katara think he was crazy?

"Actually it's amazing. You wouldn't believe all the things these girls can do. The turns and leaps they perform would take your breath away. It's the closest thing to air bending I've seen in a long time. I'm going with Katara." Aang's comment made Sokka cringe.

"Fine I'll go." Sokka huffed, folding his arms across his chest.

"Then we should go now. I hear that these shows fill up really fast." Katara grabbed Sokka and Aang by the hand impatiently. She wasn't about to miss a minute of the show.

Zuko rushed over to the object of color that caught his eye, dragging Iroh with him. With first glance at the object, which turned out to be nothing more than a poster, waves of frustration fell over him. But with second glance he took more time to examine the flyer. On it Zuko saw a girl, not much younger than himself, dressed in red, high upon her toes, her head and arms thrown back. Zuko was captivated for a moment. He found himself falling into the beautiful grey eyes of the poster girl. His uncle's voice tore him from his day dream.

"Ah, a ballet; I would love to see one again," the older man looked at his nephew. "Come to think of it, that doesn't sound like a bad idea. This one is one of my favorites." Zuko groaned, thinking back to the "cultural events" he had been forced to go to as a kid, ballets being one of them. He rolled his eyes behind his uncle's back yet again and glanced back at the young ballerina stuck to the wall. _Maybe this one won't be quite as bad._

The group found themselves at the end of a line that stretched way back into the street. At the front of the line stood a girl about Sokka's age. She had light brown hair slicked back into a bun. Her eye lids were dusted in different shades of purple and her lips a deep pink. Her bright red bodice and tutu contrasted with her fair skin beautifully. She stood talking to a little girl who seemed so thrilled to meet a real ballerina. The little girl was finally pulled away by her mother to let other girls meet the beautiful dancer.

"That must be the lead dancer," Katara said amazed.

"I can see why," Sokka stood gazing at the dancer. He had never seen some one so beautiful. "Come on. We need to find a good seat. By the looks of this line, it's only a matter of time before there aren't any left." Katara thought about teasing her brother about his sudden change of mind for the show, but didn't want to ruin the opportunity, so she followed him to some seats in the front.

The ballet was the typical story of a couple who wanted to be together but couldn't. Still, it was executed beautifully and it put Katara in tears by the end of the performance when the two knew they could only be together was in death. Sokka looked over at his sister and rolled his eyes (although when he looked away he had to blink back tears himself).

Allete watched the curtains slowly close, a bright smile plastered upon her face. She hoped her heavy panting wasn't too noticeable from the audience. That was by far the best show she'd done in a while. She could feel it. Once she was sure she was completely hidden from view of the audience, her smile faded and she slouched just a little. She loved dancing, but she was tired. Allete grabbed a towel on her way off the stage drying off her face and neck.

Out of nowhere, she bumped into an unfamiliar surface. It was a human, she knew that much, so she followed the body up to a smiling, slightly aged face.

"I am so sorry. I wasn't even paying attention to where I was going,"

"I'm actually glad I ran into you. I just wanted to congratulate you on such a wonderful performance. I loved it," Iroh smiled down at the girl, not a bit worried that she'd ran into him.

"Thank you. My number one priority is to make an imprint one the audience. I know I've accomplished my goal if they cared enough to come to me and tell me about it, good or bad." Iroh liked this girl's thinking and his smile widened. He then turned to his nephew.

"I'm going to go find a bit of something to eat. Maybe you should try being social. I'm sure this one wouldn't mind if you practice on her," He turned back to Allete. "It was nice meeting you again." And then he was off to find food, leaving the two of them alone together.

"That was even more amazing than I thought it would be." Aang sighed in amazement. "I could've sworn the lead dancer, what was her name-"

"Allete. Her name was Allete. I will always remember that." Sokka stared at the sky, obviously love struck.

"Yeah, anyway, I could've sworn she was an air bender. She seemed to float. And her jumps seemed just a little higher and more effortless than the other dancers."

"I have a feeling that's the point. But if you really think she could be an air bender than we could go talk to her. I kind of wanted to tell her what a great job she did anyway. I think I see her over there and there's not much of a crowd." Katara pointed to a figure in a red platform tutu. Sokka turned to see where his sister was pointing. If he looked closer he could see small gold sequins covering the bodice; but only if he looked closely.

"Really? Could we go talk to her, please?!" Sokka nearly tackled his sister in a big hug.

Katara pried her brother from her and smiled. "Of course we can Mr. Love-struck. Although, I think she's standing with another guy." Katara pointed to the tall boy standing next to the young lady. She then turned to Aang and said: "Hey, are you coming?"

He nodded. He was trying not to get his hopes up too much, but it was really hard, especially considering the way she moved and jumped. He wanted desperately to find another air bender.

"So did you like the show?" Allete fidgeted anxiously. She was hoping he would be one of the nicer boys she'd talked to. Sometimes they weren't the most considerate in their comments, whether they meant to be that way or not. Not to mention the fact that this one was particularly handsome. She was starting to like him and it made her even more nervous.

"Wires," Zuko said simply.

"What are you talking about?"

"It had to be wires. There's no other way you could have possibly stood on the tips of your toes without wires or something holding you up," Zuko shook his head.

"But I did. It was just me-and some really cool shoes," Allete proceeded to rise onto her toes and twirl around to prove her point. Zuko just stared at her spinning feet.

They were interrupted by a group of three. The girl was about her own age dressed in all blue. There was a cute boy that looked about the age of the boy she was talking to and resembled the girl. The other boy looked about a year younger than herself. He had an arrow on his bald head and he was dressed in orange and yellow. For a second she thought that maybe he was the Avatar, but the absurd thought was quickly pushed from her mind. The Avatar had supposedly been found but the odds of him coming to the festival were very slim, and the odds of her seeing him if he _was_ there was even slimmer. _Besides,_ she thought, _I wouldn't know what he looked like if I saw him. _

Zuko saw that it was the Avatar and his friends and he ran off. He wasn't about to blow his cover. Allete just watched him leave. But faintly she thought she could hear something along the lines of, "I'll see you later." It made her smile to know that he wanted to see her again.

"I'm Allete. Can I help you with something? Point you in the right direction, need a room, anything." Allete extended her hand, smiling widely. Sokka took it immediately.

"The name's Sokka, Southern Water Tribe." Sokka tried to sound manly and smooth, but Allete just giggled at his antics.

Katara moved in between them before Sokka embarrassed himself further. "Hi, I'm Katara. I just wanted to tell you what a great job you did. The whole thing was amazing."

"Thank you very much. We take dance very seriously on the island. I'm glad to see a foreigner appreciate it as well."

It was Aang's turn to talk now. "Hi I'm Aang. I really liked the show by the way, but I was watching and I thought that maybe, you know, you were an airbender because I am too and I would probably know these things and you just seemed like one and I really want to know if there are any more because they were all gone the last time I checked and—" Aang stopped when he looked over to see Allete looking very confused. Aang had been talking very fast. It made Allete's head spin.

"Can you repeat that? A little bit slower?" Allete still had that confused look, although it was lessened a bit.

"Sorry. I was just asking if you were an airbender."

"No, I'm pretty sure I was born here in the Earth Kingdom. I mean, I know I was adopted, but I'm pretty sure my "real" parents were from around here," Allete gestured to the land around her. "Why do you ask?"

"Are you sure you're an Earth Kingdom native? It just seemed like you were an airbender the way you jumped and turned."

"I kind of make that a priority when I dance. If you want we can go ask my parents. In fact, I would like for them to meet the Avatar anyway. You are the Avatar aren't you?" Allete nodded as if encouraging Aang to say yes.

"Yes, I'm the Avatar. I don't want to impose on your family. I mean, if you say you're not an airbender than I believe you."

"It's not imposing. Come on. I'm sure they would love to meet you." Allete took Aang by the hand and dragged him over to where her mom and dad were standing by the stage. Katara and Sokka just followed. They had been standing there listening to the whole conversation, or argument as it sounded to them.

Zuko found his uncle again at a food stand. He sighed and sat down next to his elder.

"Did you chat with her? She was a nice girl you know," Iroh really hoped Zuko hadn't been too mean.

"Yeah, she is nice. I like her," Zuko really couldn't believe he was saying such things, especially to his uncle, but that girl just had that sort of affect on him.

"Mom, Dad, this is Aang. He's the Avatar. I thought you would want to meet him. And these are his friends, Katara and Sokka," Allete smiled and gestured to teenagers standing near her. "Aang, these are my parents. My mom owns the dance company and my dad has an inn if you need a place to stay."

"I'm very happy to meet you. And I'm afraid we need to stay with Appa tonight so we'll be doing without a room," Aang bowed to his new acquaintances.

"We're honored to meet you as well. Were you at the performance?" Allete's mom asked hoping such an honored person as the Avatar was at _her_ production.

Aang opened his mouth to speak but Allete cut him off. "Mom I was going to tell you about that. He said I danced like an airbender. He actually thought I was one! Isn't that cool?" Allete was grinning from ear to ear. Her face soon fell when her parents didn't respond quite the way she thought they would.

"Allete, we need to talk. Avatar, it was very nice to meet you," Allete's parents bowed and took her by the arm. She waved and shrugged as they pulled her back to their home. Aang followed. He wanted to know what was going on, especially since he had a strong feeling he caused it.


	3. Shall We Dance?

Chapter 3 Shall We Dance

"Aang, maybe you shouldn't go. It probably isn't your place," Katara reached out to stop the young monk, but he was too fast for her. She just grabbed Sokka instead, who had been admiring some near by food, and followed him.

They arrived at a smallish stone house that resembled the others it stood beside. Aang stooped under the window and listened. The two Water Tribe teens followed his lead. They could here everything being said inside.

"What is it mother?" Allete was very confused at her parent's behavior. Her mother only sighed. This was going to take a lot of explaining, and Allete would probably only get mad. But she could certainly try her best.

"Allete, Aang was right. You aren't from the Earth Kingdom. We were waiting until you got older to tell you."

"What? Mother, you told me yourself that I was an Earth Kingdom native. Why would you lie?" Allete was confused again. Today seemed to be filled with nothing but vague statements and open-ended conversations.

"I only did it to keep you here. When you were a baby you were dropped on our door-step. The only thing with you was a short note telling us nothing but your name and where you were from."

"Well, where am I from?" Allete was almost yelling by now. Why wasn't anyone making any sense? She couldn't read her mother's mind.

"You came from one of the Air Temples. They had apparently been hiding in the mountains away from the Fire Nation's attacks. But the Fire Nation was getting smarter and on the verge of finding them, so your parents sent you here, hoping you could live out your life in peace." Allete stumbled back onto the couch. She was in shock; shock that she was an airbender, shock that her parents were just now telling her. She had so many questions she could ask.

"How-how would keeping this from me keep me here?" This was just the first question that came to mind.

"We were afraid that if you knew you were from the Air temple you would go off to find the Avatar. We were afraid we would lose you. We loved you, Allete." Allete's father spoke up now. He was usually a quiet man on matters of his personal feelings, but this was important. Regardless, Allete had been told enough for one day. She stood and made her way to the door.

"I need some air," she said opening the door, letting the cool evening breeze in. She stepped outside and closed the door. There she found her three new friends waiting outside her window. "So, you heard everything?"

The three almost jumped out of their own skins. They had not expected to be caught. Aang stumbled for an excuse. "We-we were just, um, uh. Okay, we were listening. But I'm sorry. I just thought I had something to do with this and I wanted to help. I-I'm sorry."

Allete leaned back against the wall and slid down next to Aang. She sighed and closed her eyes. This was all happening just a little fast for her. She finally spoke up. "Well, you were right. I am an airbender, and I could use a teacher. You're the only airbender I know. Do you think you could teach me?"

"I would love to, but you would have to come with us. I need to find an earthbending teacher. I don't know how happy your parents would be about letting you go off with us."

"We'll find a way to persuade them," Sokka looked determined, that is until he realized what he had just said. His cheeks turned a shade of pink.

Allete smiled softly. "They owe me this. A life of not knowing who I am should be repaid. I think this is sufficient payment."

"Very well then. We'll leave after this weekend. I figure you'll want to finish out these performances."

"You're right. I do," Allete smiled. She loved to dance and she would definitely miss it. But this was a chance of a lifetime. She wasn't about to pass up her chance of self-discovery. She would tell her parents of her decision in the morning. Right now she just wanted to see someone. There was a festival dance that evening and a certain person she wanted to attend it with.

Allete searched the city from top to bottom for the boy. _If I were a 17 year old boy stuck in this city, where would I go?_ Allete's face lit up and she headed straight for the outskirts of the town. This was not exactly the place a pubescent boy would find real interesting. She had discovered enough about the mystery boy that she knew he would probably want as far away from the crowded areas as possible.

Allete finally found him sitting alone on one of the docks of the major river that ran through the town. He was watching as the sun slowly sank below the horizon. She quietly sat down beside him. He never looked from where he was staring, just sighed softly.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" Allete's voice was barely above a whisper. The boy sat silent for a while, pondering over what to say. He looked over at Allete. She took his breath away. The setting sun cast a ray of light on her that turned her hair a sparkling copper. He wanted to touch it. He looked away when his stomach started to have that weird feeling it did the first time he saw her. He expected his mind to start berating him for thinking things like that about a girl he barely knew. It never did.

"Look, there's a dance tonight. I was wondering if you might want to go with me," Allete couldn't understand why she was so nervous about asking him. She'd asked other boys to dances and it never bothered her. She didn't understand shy this one made her so antsy.

"A dance?" Zuko wasn't too interested in the idea of sitting through one of those ballets again, no matter how beautiful Allete looked. "What kind of dance?"

"It's not a ballet," she could tell he was getting a little nervous. "It's a city dance. Everyone's going to be there."

"So, it's kind of like a ball?" That was the closest thing he could come up with.

Allete nodded and chuckled softly. "Yeah, kind of like a ball—except not as fancy." This guy was definitely a little more high-class than she'd originally thought.

"Then, I guess, I would love to go," Allete couldn't help but sigh out of relief. She honestly half expected him to turn her down. Like I said, this guy made her nervous. She stood up and dusted off her pants. She realized she was still only wearing her loose, silk pants over her bodice.

"I need to go get dressed. Do you want me to meet you back here in about half an hour?" Zuko nodded. He could probably dress up a little more himself, so he stood up and followed her back to the city where he and his uncle had gotten a room in one of the local inns. Speaking of his uncle, he dreaded telling him about his "date". His Uncle Iroh would never let this go.

About thirty minutes had passed and Prince Zuko was standing on the docks waiting on Allete. He let his hair be. There wasn't much to do with it. It was still growing out. He'd put on a nice, grey silk tunic and pants. He had a loose green jacket on top of that. Being in the typical greens and grays of the Earth Kingdom kind of made him uncomfortable. He longed for his old reds and blacks but knew that probably wouldn't be too smart. He thought about just ditching the jacket entirely before he left his room, but the night air was starting to get a little cooler so he needed something.

A few more minutes had passed and Zuko had taken to pacing the docks. He was actually starting to think that she was going to stand him up. That was until he looked up to see a figure coming toward him. It was Allete, but not the same Allete he'd seen earlier that day. He'd thought her glamorous and beautiful at the ballet. Now he thought she was simply lovely. Her hair fell in loose curls around her shoulders; it was a lot longer than he would have thought, and her simple green dress swirled around her knees as she walked. Her heavy make-up from earlier was replaced with a soft touch of color here and there, making her look more real and approachable.

Zuko walked to her and offered her his arm. She smiled and took it. They walked to the center of town, making small talk here and there, but mostly just stayed quiet, enjoying each other's company. They could hear the music getting louder as they got closer to the town. They could see people swirling on the dance floor, letting loose all inhibitions and just having fun.

Zuko remembered the Fire Nation balls he'd been forced to attend when he was younger. Most of the time he had been causing mischief in other parts of the palace, but the times he couldn't escape he had to sit and watch the adults dance. He remembered how stiff they looked. It all seemed so scheduled and artificial. This was a different situation entirely.

Allete could feel Zuko tense. She was definitely going to have her work cut out for her with this one. They approached the dance floor and Zuko took a deep breath and closed his eyes, hoping he wouldn't make too big of a fool of himself in front of Allete. She was a professional dancer. There was no way he could keep up with her and he knew it. Allete could tell he was feeling a little nervous about this and gave his hand a slight squeeze before leading him out. "Don't worry. You'll be fine."


	4. We Have Company

Chapter 4 We Have Company

**AN: I would like to thank my awesome reveiwer, Mystery Writer 5775. Thank you very much!!1 Sqeals and jumps up and down with Mystery That was the sweetest review I've ever read!!1 Okay, so it was the only review I've ever read, but I loved it anyway!!!1 All I can say is just keep reading... **

"Do you know how to dance?" Allete asked taking Zuko's hand in hers.

Zuko was a bit stunned by the question. Of course he knew how to dance. He'd watched the adults do it plenty of times. And he was prince of the Fire Nation. He had to know how to dance. But she didn't know that. She had no clue who he was. He slipped his hand around her waist and pulled her close. He could do this. No problem, right?

"Yeah, sort of," Zuko started to move with the music, and Allete just let him lead. He was doing fine so she rested her head on his chest and followed his movements. His arms around her were strangely warm, and his clothes smelled faintly of smoke, but she liked it.

"I'm Zuko by the way," he whispered into her ear. His breath was strangely warm as well and it smelled of cinnamon. She liked that too.

"I'm Allete."

"I know. Your name's all over this city."

Allete blushed. "Yeah, too much if you ask me. I'm not that special." Zuko thought differently. She was very special, but he would be a fool to tell her that now.

He heard the music change and pick up pace. He dropped his hold on Allete, watching the other dancers around them doing steps that involved intricate footwork and lifting their partners. She took his hand again and told him to do exactly as she said. He followed her every instruction and soon they were spinning and twirling just as well or better than the others. Zuko couldn't help but smile. For the first time in a long time he was enjoying himself.

"You learn fast," Allete was smiling too. _Mission accomplished, _she thought. _I got him to loosen up. _

That night, which was definitely one of the best he'd ever had, Zuko learned a number of different dances, most of them involving fast footwork and lifting. He was amazed to find just how light Allete was, like she was made of air. Learning the dances had definitely been fun. He'd even caught himself laughing a time or two, but all too soon, the party began to break up.

"I should probably go. It's getting kind of late," Allete pulled away. Zuko nodded.

"Yeah, me too. My uncle will start to worry about me."

"Hey, by the way, do you need a place to stay. My parents own an inn if you need a room."

"No, we got one already. But thanks."

"Oh, okay. I had fun tonight," Allete was being completely serious. That night had been one of her favorites as well.

"So have I. I'm glad I came."

"Good, that's good," Allete came to a loss for words. She wasn't sure what to say so she stuck with good night.

"Good night. I'll see you around," Zuko really hated to leave. Allete did too. But she had to do her night time rounds at her parents' inn, and it really was getting late.

Allete floated home, savoring her last moments with the boy, or Zuko as she'd come to find out. She came into the front room of the lodge. She greeted her parents who were sitting at the front desk and grabbed her apron from a hook by the door. She tied it around her waist as she came to her first door.

Everything was the same as usual. No one really needed anything, no one ever did, but she was instructed to do it anyway. "Just in case," her parents would always say.

Her last room of the night came up and Allete gathered her last bits of remaining energy. She was getting very tired, but she managed to put a big smile on her face and knock on the door, just as bright and cheerfully as she had the first.

Zuko hadn't planned on any visitors that night. He was almost asleep until this person decided to come, waking him up. He opened it, rather roughly I might add, to a familiar face.

"I'm sorry. If you want me to come back in the morning then I-" Allete looked up to see Zuko, shirtless, standing at the door. She looked away to hide the blush that was slowly starting to creep up her neck and onto her face.

"I didn't know it was you. What are you doing here anyway?" Zuko's look softened when he saw who it was.

"I work here. This is my parents' inn. I was just making my rounds. Do you need anything for the night?" Allete managed to look up enough to talk to the boy's face and not the ground.

"No, I think we're fine," Allete nodded and turned to go. Zuko stopped her with another good night. She paused and smiled.

"Good night," she whispered, leaving for her own room in her own home.

The next morning Allete woke up bright and early ready to talk to her parents. She practically skipped down the hall to the kitchen. There, her parents were waiting on her with breakfast already cooked. The family exchanged good mornings, although her parents' were a little less enthusiastic than usual. They knew the talk that was coming up.

"Mom, Dad, I-" Allete was cut off by her parents practically reading her mind.

"We know. And we understand. We discussed this last night," Allete's mother spoke up first. They both seemed upset with very good reason to be.

"So I take it you've decided to let me go," Allete said it as if it were a given.

"No, we just can't let you go," It was Allete's father who spoke now. He sounded very tired. He'd probably lost sleep over this and it only added to the guilt Allete was already feeling.

"You've hidden my true self from me my entire life. I finally have a chance to know who I am. You owe this to me. Please, I won't get this chance again," Allete remained calm. She wanted this really bad. Arguing and raising her voice definitely wasn't going to get her anywhere.

"We've thought about that too. And we understand what this means to you. We know you're almost an adult and you can take care of yourself and you won't be alone. We know all these things, but we're mostly worried you'll go off and won't come back."

"Mom, I love you, and Dad. I'll be coming back. There isn't anything that would keep me from coming back home every once in a while. Please, Mom, Dad, I'm begging you. Like I said, this is a once in a life time opportunity. You've been protecting me my entire life. Please," Allete was almost on her knees begging.

"Do you promise to protect yourself?" Allete nodded. "And do you promise to visit as much as possible?" Allete nodded faster. "Then I guess maybe you could go. Just be careful. You're an adult now and you'll have to leave the house soon anyway. Maybe this is your time."

"It is!! I promise it is!! Oh thank you, thank you, thank you! I love you!!" Allete threw her arms around her parents' shoulders. Then she ran back to her room and started throwing her clothes and other things into a bag. Remembering Aang, she ran out as soon as she was finished to find him and the others. She found them near a particularly large and dangerous roller-coaster.

"Aang! Aang, guess what!!!" she nearly tackled the group and left them no time to answer before she did it herself. "I get to come! My parents said it was okay!!"

Aang just stood there taking in what she said. After a minute he shook his head and just asked, "Are you serious?" Allete nodded her head vigorously. "When do we need to leave?"

"I have my last show this afternoon. We can leave as soon as that's over and I've said all my good byes," Allete figured times in her head. Sokka figured their own times in his head.

"That gives us a few hours to make it to our next town. Then we'll spend the night there, look for a teacher in the morning and then leave again unless we find one. That throws us off track a few hours, but I guess we can make it work," Sokka was drawing figures in the air with his index finger as he talked. Allete just stared at him, unsure of his logic.

"I have to go get ready, but I'll meet you guys around here when I get through performing okay?" Allete pointed to the ground they were standing on. She then turned to leave for the dance studio to get her costume and warm-up. But not before turning back one last time to say, "I wouldn't ride that if I were you."

Katara was gripping the sides of the car she, her brother and the Avatar were riding in with one hand and holding her stomach with the other. She had managed to persuade her friends into not taking her onto the death machine Allete had warned them off of, but she was now just trying to hold her lunch down on the tilt-a-hurl.

Meanwhile, Zuko sat in the car on the opposite end of the wooden beam that was the tilt-a-hurl. This was the farthest thing from _fun_ he'd ever done. His head ached from the two screaming 10 year olds across from him. He was trying to think enough to figure out how his uncle had forced him onto this poor excuse for a ride. He finally had a moment's peace when the screaming stopped long enough for Zuko to watch in horror as one of the children quieted long enough to lose its lunch all over his boots. Zuko clenched his fists trying to hold back the flames that threatened to explode all over that child and prayed to the heavens that the mess didn't seep through his shoes.

But through all the spinning, Katara thought she saw a familiar face with a familiar scar over his left eye. _No,_ she thought._ I'm just really dizzy. If he's here, I'll see him when I get off. _The ride finally did end and she stumbled off, looking all over for the prince she thought she saw. If she'd only turned one more corner she would have seen him by a water pump cleaning the kid's puke off his boots. And if he'd only looked toward the harbor, he would have seen the fleet of Fire Navy ships pulling in.


	5. Hide Me

Chapter 5: Hide Me

**Maybe you'll get a few laughs from this chapter. I tried to make it sort of funny. When my mom was reading over it she laughed out loud a few times. So that's good. Enjoy and review!! Please review!!**

"What do you mean he's sick?!" Allete was pacing the floor of the ballet studio, already dressed in her tutu and pointe shoes, along with her mother. One of the stage hands had just informed them that Allete's Cavalier came down with some sort of disease and wasn't able to dance that day. Her day had just gone from amazingly well to amazingly horrible in only a few short seconds.

"I guess we'll just make do. Some of your dances can be done as a solo and no one will notice. Right?" her mother was starting to hyperventilate.

"Right. No one will notice. It'll all come together," Allete patted her mother on the back demonstrating breathing techniques. They all ran to side stage so the show could start.

About half way through the show they still didn't have a Cavalier.

"Well, things can't get much worse can they?" Allete was getting really nervous. It was getting to the major climax of the ballet. She needed a partner. But, because things can always get worse, about that time Zuko came running through the wings.

"Hide me," he panted.

"What? Hide you? Where?" Allete was getting really confused… again.

"Yes, hide me. I don't care where just hide me," Zuko kept looking around. Allete was frantically trying to find a place to stow him just to get him out of the way until an idea struck her head.

"Put this guy in a costume! He's going to be my Cavalier!" Allete shoved Zuko into the arms of a few stage hands who took him behind a curtain and began stripping him of his clothes. They were replaced with some tights and a gold tunic. Zuko just stood there wondering where the pants were.

"Where are the pants?" he had to know.

"There aren't any," the stage hands said it as if everyone should have known that.

"Well there are now," with that Zuko pulled on some black stretch pants he saw hanging up. The hands would have stopped him but it was too late; he was needed on stage.

"Just follow my lead. I'll whisper you things when I can," Allete pulled him on stage and began to move her feet in quick tiny little steps.

"What do I do?" Zuko whispered through his fake smile.

"Just hold my hand for now," Zuko did as he was told. "Okay, now put your hands on my waist. Just move to the left I'll do all the work." Again, Zuko did as he was told.

"Do I smile?"

"No. Just stand there and look haughty and arrog- Yes just like that."

It went that way for the next few minutes. Allete would tell Zuko what to do and he would do it. It was mostly things along the lines of, "Point your toes." And, "Keep it graceful." And, "Loosen your grip. I can't move." She tried to keep it to just repeating the same combination over and over, sometimes changing the order.

After a few moments of just standing there looking good, Zuko started to warm up to the whole idea of dancing. It was almost exactly like the other night. He was actually starting to have fun… again. That was until he saw some guys in red armor making their way up the aisles. His eyes widened. They'd found him again.

_This can't be happening, _he thought tightening his grip on Allete. They were almost at the stage until a glint of orange caught both their eyes. The soldiers split up some chasing the Avatar through the rows of seats, some still making their way up the middle row coming toward the stage.

Pandemonium broke out at that very moment. Zuko picked Allete up and carried her off stage.

He set her down once they were in the wings and pressed himself up against a wall.

About that time Aang and his friends came running through. "We have to go," he shouted as he jetted past. "We'll come back as soon as we can," Aang looked at who Allete was standing by. His eyes got wide and he ran away even faster.

"Look, I know the Avatar. I can take you to them. You wanted to get out of here anyway," Zuko grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the theater. Allete was taken home to get her things.

"Just run in, get your stuff, and come out," Zuko told her quietly, looking out for any soldiers. Allete nodded and did what she was told, only stopping long enough to write a quick note to her parents telling them where she was going. She came out a few seconds later carrying her bags. Zuko took a couple and lead her to his waiting uncle by the gates. They all met up and started running as fast as their legs would carry them.

"So they're chasing you?" Allete asked through breaths.

"Yeah," Zuko really didn't want to start explaining things now.

Allete just stopped and stared at him a minute. "Who _are_ you?" She ran to catch up with the other two.

"That will all be explained in due time. Right now we just need to get to safety. That obviously isn't here." Iroh could say it better than Zuko, so he did. Allete just shook her head and followed.

_Yesterday I was confused all day. Today I'm getting chased. I'm just a dancer. I never asked to be running through the forest with some guys I hardly know being chased by some guys that could set me on fire in one swift motion. Oh man it's even worse trying to explain it to myself. _Allete shuddered. She was only a few yards away from death and it was quickly gaining.

Their luck ran out completely when they hit the water's edge. Zuko was pacing the shoreline trying to think of a way off the island. He soon spotted a small fishing boat. He threw his and his uncle's bags into it and held out his hand for Allete to get in.

"I'm not going to steal a boat," Allete looked back at the soldiers quickly approaching.

"It's either that or get killed." Zuko stretched out his hand farther. Then he dropped it. _She wouldn't get killed. Let her go, Zuko. Don't make her do this if she doesn't want to. _"Look, if you stay here you'll be safe. They'll come back for you they said they would. Just make your decision fast."

Allete closed her eyes and sighed harshly. _Just do it, Allete._ She growled and dropped her bags into the boat. "Fine. Let's go."

Zuko couldn't help but smile on the inside. She was coming with them. That was good. But they weren't getting anywhere fast in that boat, Allete knew that. So, when no one could see her she blew air into the sails. It wasn't much; she didn't know how to do much, but it was something.

Eventually, they hit the shores of the mainland. They all grabbed bags and jumped out, running into the forest.

The three kept running, dodging trees, and jumping over logs. Allete felt her lungs start to burn after a while. Her bags were getting heavier by the passing second. Her legs were getting harder to move.

"I don't think I can run like this much longer. Aren't we safe by now?" Allete gasped her words more than said them.

"She's right, Zuko. You might be able to, but the other two with you can't hold up. I'm old and she's not used to running like this," Iroh stopped and rested against a tree, setting down his bags. Allete soon followed and then Zuko.

"I'm not going to let them catch me. I told you stopping at that town was a bad idea," Zuko knew that wasn't entirely true. He'd had some of the best times of his life there, but regardless, if they'd kept moving they wouldn't be in this mess now. But then again he would never have met Allete. Zuko fought with himself for a few minutes before just giving in. He leaned against a near by tree and closed his eyes.

Allete slid down to the ground. Zuko heard the leaves crunch and jumped into a fighting stance. He looked over at Allete who had just hit the ground and put his arms down.

"This is ridiculous. I'm jumping at every little sound," Zuko joined Allete on the forest floor. He rubbed his eyes with his hands.

"Do you think it's safe enough for you to tell me just exactly who you are?" Allete was getting more agitated than anything else.

"You're right. I guess we should explain," Iroh sighed. "But before we do, just answer one question. How do you feel about firebenders?"

**By the way, a cavalier, or consort, is the dude that accompanies the female dancer(s). Just in case you didn't know!! **


	6. One the Road Again

Chapter 6: On The Road Again

**I got TWO reviews on chapters 4 and 5!! That's pretty good. I guess I should answer them now. So, here it goes:**

**Dear myster writer5775, the fic is set after The Avatar State but I completely threw out the rest of the season. I've seen all of season two and what's out of season three, but this goes down a completely different path. I guess that kind of answers your other question too. Toph probably won't show up. I just don't think I could make it work. She is one of my favorite characters, but I just could figure out a way. You're awesome by the way. I love your reviews. So, thanks!!**

**Dear god'sboxer777, I kind of ask myself the same question sometimes. I don't know, I guess it's because know one really knows my stuff. But that was probably a rhetoricle question anyway. ) By the way, I wanted you to know that the Rocky movies are on my top five list of best most awesomest movies ever also!! **

**So that was it. Kind of sad I know. Only two. But you guys can change that if you would just write something!! But anyway... ON WITH THE STORY!!!**

"I really hate to leave her," Aang stared at the ground passing beneath them. He was really starting to feel guilty.

"Yeah, so do I. But I guess it was for the best," Sokka looked depressed.

"She would have gotten killed if she came with us. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have been much of a fighter. We'll come back for her later when things have settled down," Katara rubbed her travel partners on the back, comforting them. They'd come back, they really would. She just didn't know when.

"Firebenders? You two are from the Fire Nation?" Allete had no personal problems with firebenders. She'd led a pretty sheltered life on her little island as most of Malia's occupants did. But still, she'd heard stories. Iroh only nodded. "Well, why were those guys chasing you? You're on their side are you not?"

"Not to them. To them we are traitors." Iroh looked back to the direction they'd been coming from. Before explaining anything further, they had decided to make camp deep in the woods. They were currently sitting around a big camp fire. Allete only watched in amazement when Zuko built it, shooting fire from his bare hands. She was speechless for a good five minutes.

"Do you think Azula sent them?" Zuko was sure his sister was after him. This only refreshed his mind of why he hated her.

"Who is Azula? Who are you? Why aren't you answering my questions?" Allete was getting frustrated. It was like they weren't really talking to her. _Why do people always think I'm a mind reader?_

"I'm sorry. We're getting to that. Now, this information is a secret. No one can ever know our real names. Yours maybe, but not ours," Iroh lowered his voice to just above a whisper. He leaned in closer to the fire which made Allete follow. "This is Prince Zuko. And I am his uncle Iroh. Azula is Zuko's sister, Princess Azula." Allete was just a little nervous about sitting so close to such powerful benders. She was also a little awe-struck at being with royalty.

"I can't believe this," she whispered to herself more than the other two. Her life seemed to be picking up pace into a whirlwind that swirled around her. The problem is, no one could really clear it up for her how or why said whirlwind decided to invade her life.

Allete soon realized her place and remembered her manners. She stood and gave a small curtsy to both of them. "I feel very honored to be in such presence."

"Thank you but those won't be necessary. We wouldn't ask a friend to bow." Iroh waved his hand to dismiss the curtsies.

"I hate to leave so early, but it's getting late and I've had a very weird, to say the least, day. I think I'll turn it in now." Allete grabbed her sleeping bag and pillow and found herself a small plot of ground with as little rocks as possible.

Zuko and Iroh soon did the same, but Zuko wasn't sleeping. _Watch my luck make this turn out to be a dream. Allete is traveling with us. We have to take her to the Avatar. There I can capture him and- No, no, no. that would be using Allete. But this is almost too big of an opportunity to pass up._ Once again, Allete unconsciously made Zuko fight with himself. He'd been questioning his gut a lot lately and usually her name was in the argument somewhere. It really was getting ridiculous. He was falling for this girl—hard.

Over on her side of the camp site, Allete wasn't sleeping either. _This can't be happening. No way am I laying only a few feet from the prince of the Fire Nation. I really can't believe this. Either I'm about to wake up, or Zuko's going to come over and fry me. Either way things aren't going to end up well. I can just feel it. But Zuko wouldn't do that. He's much nicer than those animals that chased us out here. _Allete flopped onto her stomach. Zuko was so lovable to her, but also so hard to trust. She couldn't read him, and it bothered her. All she knew was that she was falling for this boy—hard.

The next morning, Allete woke up with a sore back. Apparently she hadn't dodged all the rocks in the forest and a couple had dug into her back all night. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. She was still very tired and wanted to sleep some more but figured her hosts would think she was lazy. So she pulled herself out of her sleeping bag and into the crisp morning air. Shivers ran down her back and arms. She needed a hot bath. _Think Allete, we are in the middle of nowhere. There are no such things as hot baths anymore._ She groaned. This was definitely going to be something to get used too.

Iroh came up just as Allete was muttering to herself about the need for a bath and warmth. He thought he could help. "I suppose you would like some warm water this morning?"

Allete sighed contently. _Of course, they can heat the water. They're firebenders. Maybe this won't be so bad._ "Please?" She grabbed her clothes and soap and such and followed the older gentleman to a place in the woods filled with springs. She watched as he placed his hands in the water and breathed deeply. Soon steam was rising from the water.

"Maybe that's not too hot. I can heat it but I can't cool it off," Iroh smiled. Allete did too. She could almost feel the water heating her from the inside already.

Zuko was sitting by the lake, meditating, when he felt someone behind him. He cracked open one eye and looked up at the figure who had disturbed his peace. It was, of course, Allete. She had on new clothes but her hair was still a little damp from her bath. She had a pole in her hand.

"Can I help you with something?" Allete could tell Zuko was slightly irritated. She didn't care. He'd been out there all morning.

"I was sent with this and told to catch something. I don't suppose you would mind if I sit here?" Allete had already started to put her stuff down. Zuko had no choice but to let her go ahead. He had no reason to stop her either. He really did like her company.

After a few minutes though, the tense silence was starting to get to him. He decided to break it. "You never did tell me why you were going with the Avatar."

"You never asked. Besides, you wouldn't believe me if I told you." Allete baited her hook and cast it into the water.

"Try me."

"Okay. He's supposed to teach me airbending. I'm an airbender.

"Yeah. Sure. You're an airbender and I'm a pretty little bird."

"I told you you wouldn't believe me."

"You're serious? You really are an airbender?" Zuko looked Allete straight in the eyes.

"Yes." She returned the favor.

"Okay. I believe you. I still think this is weird, but I believe you."

"That's good. Now you get to answer my question."

"That depends on the question, but shoot."

"How do you know the Avatar?"

Zuko hesitated, not sure how to answer. "We had… encounters."

"Really? What Kind of 'encounters'? Good or bad?" This guy had Allete's suspicions raised. Not in a really bad way, just raised.

"Just… encounters." Okay, so now he was being evasive. That's fine he could keep his secrets. That just meant she could keep hers too, although she'd already told him most everything about her.

"One of these days, you'll open up. I just think you're scared."

Zuko just scoffed at the insult. No one had ever called him scared before. "_Scared? _You think I'm _scared?_ Yeah right. I'm not scared to tell you anything, I just don't want to."

Allete made a noise of disbelief. He was a bad liar; she'd picked up that much. They sat quiet again for a few more minutes until Allete's fishing pole began to bob up and down. She jumped up and pulled as hard as she could.

"What kind of fish is that?" Zuko jumped up with her. She was having no luck with pulling the wriggling fish in. He went around behind her and put his arms over hers. Once again she noticed how warm he was. She couldn't help but blush and bask in the moment. _He has his arms around me!_ She thought giddily. Guys had had their arms around her before, but this time she almost melted, and she wasn't quite sure why.

"We've almost got him," Zuko pulled a little harder on the rod and out of the water jumped a big, green fish. He looked to be about a foot long. Zuko took his arms away, to Allete's disappointment, and grabbed the swinging line. He was grinning ear to ear and he took the fish off the hook. Allete could never understand what made guys so happy about killing a fish. The men in her village always had the same look on their faces when they came home with a bunch of fish. She never quite understood.

The three of them ate well that morning, or well enough for being alone out in the woods, but there was always something about eating meat that made Allete's skin crawl every single time.


	7. Do You Know Why Fires Go Out?

Chapter 7: Do You Know Why Fires Go Out?

**Thank you for your wonderful reviews Mystery and God'sboxer777!! I loved them!! And I hope you're right. Maybe I'll get some reviews once it's completly finished. I tend to not read stories unless they're done because all the good ones I find aren't finished and they never get finished. But that's just my luck. But anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I know I did!!! A little bit of fluff; that's always good right?!!! But like I said before... PLEASE REVIEW!!! **

Once again, Zuko and Allete found themselves sharing the sunset on the water's edge. Appa had been spotted flying towards the west a little after breakfast, so they had been traveling that way all day. They had found a clearing in the woods and decided to make camp there. Now, it was time to relax.

Zuko looked over at Allete. The sun was making her hair turn copper again. He still wanted to touch it, run his fingers through it. Maybe Allete was right. Maybe he was afraid. For some reason he could manage to find the courage to steal a boat and fight, but he could barely talk to a girl; especially this girl. It made him frustrated, to say the least, that Allete was always the one to start the conversations. He didn't understand how easy it was for her to just start talking, even if it wasn't about anything in particular.

But it wasn't easy. It was hard for her to just start talking. She wanted him to do it just once, but he never did. She wondered if he knew just how hard it was to keep from just going over to him and resting her head on his chest, taking in his scent again. She wondered if he could see her eyes light up every time she saw him. She looked over at him.

Their eyes locked on each other's for a moment maybe two before Zuko just couldn't take it any more. He couldn't handle looking into those eyes. He got lost in them and he hated getting lost. He tore his eyes away from her. She had too big a hold on him; on his emotions. He hated it… but he loved it.

Soon Allete turned her gaze back towards the water again. She was frantically searching for something to say. She wanted to hear his voice. Zuko was actually doing the same thing. He wanted to hear her voice.

"What if those soldiers find us again?" Allete had found something faster than him… again. He sighed in defeat.

"I guess we'll just fight them off and move faster. Why do you ask?" Zuko really hadn't ever thought about her question. Those soldiers were in the back of his mind for the most part.

"Yeah, you'll fight them. I'll just stand there like a scared little girl and watch. I don't know how to fight. I don't even know how to hold a sword much less use it. I can't bend yet," Allete had a small amount of fear in her eyes. It really bothered her that she didn't know how to do anything. Zuko and Iroh might protect her, but she wanted to feel useful and not just as extra baggage.

"I guess I could teach you what I know in some basic martial arts. I don't think you'll ever want to wield a sword." Zuko didn't want her wielding a sword. It made him nervous.

"Good! When?" Allete was getting really excited about learning some martial arts. It sounded fun.

"I guess we can travel during the day and train at night. Uncle Iroh can take care of food." Speaking of food, the two of them were getting pretty hungry. They decided to go back to camp where Iroh was cooking something he'd apparently caught while they were out. Allete really didn't want to know what it was. She ate it when it was prepared anyway.

Sometime after dinner, the topic of the elements came up.

"What are you talking about? You're full of it. I really don't think fire is the most powerful element. Maybe the most destructive but not the most powerful," Allete was getting pretty mad. Somewhere along, a nice calm discussion of the four elements had turned into a full fledged argument between the younger firebender and the airbender. Iroh just sat back and watched. It really was quite amusing just to listen to.

"Look at the hold we have on the other nations. I'd say that's power. And if fire's not the most powerful _element_, what is?" Zuko was fully confident in his debating skills.

"Okay first off, that's more greed and cruelty than anything else. Second, one element is not stronger than any of the others. They're all supposed to work together. You think fire is indestructible. You think it can't be destroyed. You think it's strongest out of all the elements. You think wrong," Allete had just beaten him in her mind. He may have not known it yet, but in her head was a plan to show him up.

"Oh really? Prove it. Prove to me that fire is not the strongest." Zuko sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. Allete picked up the make-shift bucket they had and took it down to the beach. She came back with it full of sand. Zuko watched her pour it over the fire, extinguishing it.

"Well-um-I-uh-okay," Zuko was at a loss for words. He couldn't think of anything to say to counter that.

"Make another fire," Zuko did as he was told. Allete went back to the beach with her bucket. She came back with it filled again, this time with water. Zuko watched again as she extinguished the fire with her bucket of water. Zuko didn't even try to speak this time. He looked over at his uncle who was nodding and smiling.

"Make another one," Zuko sighed and did as he was told again. Allete took in a deep breath and blew into the flames. This time the fire didn't die. It instead grew much bigger. Zuko had a smirk on his face.

"Well, that wasn't supposed to happen," Allete said more to herself then the tothers. She gathered some more air and blew. The fire grew again. She looked completely bewildered. She took a seat next to Zuko and just stared into the fire.

"Do you know why that fire didn't go out?" Allete shook her head. "It was because a fire needs air to live. All the other things you did to the fire killed it because it took away its air supply." Zuko lit a small flame in his hand. "Without air, fire dies." Zuko closed his hand and the small flame disappeared.

Allete had a strange feeling he was talking about more than the elements; that maybe, just maybe, he was talking about the two of them. Allete's strange feeling grew even more when she realized how close Zuko's face was to her own. She could feel his breath. She could feel him slowly closing the gap between them. She panicked, and quickly turned her head away.

Zuko closed his eyes and stood up. He was embarrassed, but more than that he was frustrated. When he finally did something brave he didn't even get the chance to follow through.

Allete just put her head in her hands and breathed deeply. She'd just missed her chance; her perfect opportunity to do what she'd been wanting to for a while. The moment was extinguished; just like the flame.

**Okay please don't kill me!! It kind of made me upset to have to do it too but I think it's just a little too early for kissing and you know, it might even be too early for this, but I had to get the story moving somewhere. Oh, and don't expect too much out of the martial arts thing. I know most people use training as a time to get all friendly and close, but I think that's just a little cliche for me!!! But yeah, don't kill me. And review!!!**


	8. Losing Sleep

Chapter 8: Losing Sleep

The next few days were awkward, to say the least. Zuko never watched the sunset with Allete anymore, in fact, he didn't do much of anything with her except teach her, and even then his vocabulary was very limited, sticking to words with only one or two syllables. She'd embarrassed him to no end, and it hurt her to know it. It pained her even more to know that she'd lost her one and only chance to show Zuko how she felt. She knew she had to start a conversation sometime, even if it risked her being shut down completely, but she couldn't handle the tense silence shared by the whole group.

Even Iroh wasn't talking as much as he usually did. He decided to just stay out of the way and let the two of them work it out. He knew Zuko still liked the girl. He knew the girl still liked Zuko as well. They would both have to swallow their pride and say something eventually. He figured if either of them needed help they would ask. Until then, he would just sit back and watch the young love continue to bloom.

It always was a truly beautiful thing to see two people grow to love each other, and especially good for his nephew to experience it. Zuko needed someone to break down his walls he'd built around his heart.

And as much as he hated to admit, Zuko was actually starting to like the deconstruction process until Allete built them even thicker in one swift motion. He wanted to say something to her, he truly did, but he just couldn't think of anything. He was still too uncomfortable with the idea.

But fate always had its ways of taking him out of his comfort zone; this time being one of the more awful times. They'd been walking back to camp from they're evening of training when Allete decided to speak up finally.

"How much do you think this will actually help with airbending?" Allete's voice shook with nervousness.

Zuko was startled himself. He wasn't expecting her to say anything. He thought quickly for an answer. "Some, maybe. Airbending and firebending are pretty different in technique, but this may lay a little foundation." Zuko was surprised at how much he actually managed to get out.

Allete was too. She opened her mouth and almost commented on his use of multiple words, but, fortunately, didn't. "How far do you think we are from them anyway?"

Once again, Allete had managed to find a question that Zuko didn't know the answer to. He wasn't quite sure how far away the next town was. "You're the one from the Earth Kingdom. Shouldn't you know?" His answer had come out just a little angrier than he'd meant for it to.

Allete winced. She hadn't known it would make him so mad. _See this is why we haven't said anything, Allete. _Her mind reminded her once again why she'd kept her mouth shut for so long. She didn't understand how a person could go from fun and friendly and open to shut tight as a drum and no fun at all in only a few seconds. Maybe she should talk to his uncle. He was the person who knew Zuko best after all. She decided she would do that as soon as she had him alone.

That happened sooner that she'd thought it would. Zuko turned it in strangely early that night, but she didn't feel like worrying about it. She just wanted to know what was up with him.

"Mr. Iroh?" Allete stepped softly over to where the older man was sitting drinking tea by the fire.

"You don't have to call me that. Just Iroh will do. Is something wrong?" He smiled but looked a bit concerned.

"Just Iroh then, there is something wrong. It's Zuko." Allete whispered, not wanting anyone to hear but the two of them. But Zuko, having the hearing of a warrior, did hear.

"Ah, I thought so. Tell me, what is my nephew doing to bother you so." Iroh smiled knowingly.

"Well, it's not so much what he's doing; it's what he's not doing."

"What is he not doing then?"

"Anything," she sighed. Iroh chuckled softly. The prince had been known to do nothing before. "He won't talk past a few words, he only half pays attention to what I'm doing or saying, and he just isn't being himself anymore."

"I'm sorry to inform you that this actually is himself. The way he was around you was what was strange to me. I had never seen him so open and talkative before you came along. I think what's happened here is that he had a strange trust in you that has been slightly damaged by your refusal to kiss him the other night."

A swift blush colored her face. Allete had no idea Iroh had paid attention to their little drama by the fire. "I wasn't refusing. I just panicked. I wanted to kiss him, but I got scared. I wasn't meaning to destroy his trust in me." Zuko's ears perked up at this._ So she had actually wanted to kiss me. That was a good sign. _He could feel his embarrassment slowly start to melt away. He just kept listening.

"The only way you'll be able to get him to talk to you again is if you show him that the trust can still be there and he won't get hurt. Like most boys his age, he's only afraid of getting in too deep and losing the control in the relationship. My advice is to slowly start to engage in conversation, keeping it simple. He'll come around so don't fret over it too much." Iroh stood and Allete followed. She was given a small hug of reassurance and then hurried on to bed with wishes of sweet dreams.

But Allete couldn't sleep. _Break him in slowly, huh? That can't be too hard can it?_ Allete tossed and turned. There was no way she was sleeping tonight. She had too much on her mind. Not just with Zuko, but with Aang as well. _What if he goes back to get me but I'm not there. What if he gives up on me? What if I never find him?_ Her parents had always told her not to concern herself with what-ifs, but she couldn't help it. There were just too many of them. Eventually, however, she found herself dozing off in the midst of them into a dreamless sleep.

Zuko was doing the same thing on his side of camp. He'd, once again found himself losing sleep over that girl. Such a miniscule thing, that girl, but his mind, which he'd noticed had come to have a mind of its own lately, continuously made her into something of utmost importance. All his decisions lately seemed to involve her. It thrilled him to no end to know that she _did _want to kiss him. The relief and excitement over that fact kept him tossing around as well. But he suddenly stopped short, his mind forcing logic onto him. _It's a kiss Zuko. Don't get yourself all worked up over a kiss. _He couldn't help it though. Like I said before, she had that affect on him. But, he too also found himself in a restless sleep eventually.

Iroh, of course, didn't lose sleep over either of them.


	9. Dancing In the Rain

Chapter 9: Dancing In the Rain

**So I know I haven't updated in a while (I really don't know how long it's been) but that is because at first I just didn't feel like it and then when my lazyness subsided it wouldn't let me upload anything. So... here it is. Chapter 9. And just to make up for my lazyness, I decided to throw in one more extra chapter. So you get 10 also. You should feel special! Oh, and one more thing. The whole story is complete. I've finished it!!! So it'll probably be up a chapter a night, not like there's much left. **

Zuko awoke to a steady drizzling rain hitting his face. _Great, just great, _he thought. He didn't like the rain. He really didn't like the rain in the woods. It would slowly turn the whole thing into a giant mud hole. He could only imagine the fun times they would have trudging through that.

Rolling his eyes, he dragged himself out from under the warmth of his blankets. The ground was already beginning to soften and the rain was steadily falling harder. His two sleeping companions heard him stir and readily became aware of their predicament.

Allete jumped up and quickly picked her things up off the ground, trying to keep them from getting even wetter than they already were. "What are we to do now?" She asked staring at the sky.

"We'll have to find a place to stay. We obviously can't be walking through the forest in this weather. Luckily, I think I see smoke in the distance. That's very possibly a house of some kind." Iroh stood up and pointed to some whiffs of grey off beyond the trees.

"Let's just hope we can make it before the storm hits its peak," Zuko was stuffing his things into his bags, pretty angrily. Things weren't going his way this morning.

And things continued to stray from his ideal morning. The rain that was continuing to pick up pace caused big mud puddles to pop up everywhere, and of course, Zuko's boots were the ones to get stuck in them. He honestly felt sorry for his poor shoes. They'd been through a lot over the course of their little trip. He cringed at the memory of the ride he'd been forced on.

The smoke was slowly becoming more visible and the mood in the group started to lighten up, except for Zuko. Iroh's chipper attitude caused humming which made Zuko even more ill tempered. Allete's new found happiness resulted in a slight bounce in her step which Zuko tried to get mad at but only wound up finding it unbearably cute. It made him mad that he couldn't get mad. This was why he hated the rain.

To their luck, the smoke did lead to a house. The group ran up the steps and onto a covered porch, shaking the water out of their clothes. Allete knocked on the door and it was opened by a bright older lady. She had her graying hair pulled into a loose bun on her head and an apron hanging by a loop of string around her neck.

"We are travelers trying to get to the nearest village. Do you think we could possibly wait out the rain here?" Allete raised her voice over the rolling thunder.

"Of course child! Come in. My husband and I just finished breakfast. We have plenty of leftovers if you haven't eaten yet." The lady motioned for them to follow her in and they gladly did. The wind was beginning to pick up making the rain on their skin dry, chilling them.

Inside, however, it was much warmer with the roaring fire in a fireplace on one of the walls of the larger room. The three took a seat in front of it trying to dry their clothes.

An older gentleman stepped into the large room from somewhere in the back of the house. He was tall and skinny, but had kindness in his eyes and wisdom in his wrinkles. "Mornin'," he said briskly, nodding to his guests, before grabbing a raincoat and heading out the door.

Allete flashed him and smile and quickly turned her attention back to the warm fire. She watched the flames flicker for a while and listened to the woman in the kitchen bring out dishes and put food on them, but her airbender curiosity got a hold of her. "So, what are you and your husband doing out here in the middle of the woods?"

"We've lived out here for quite some time. My husband and I prefer the quiet. The cities are just too busy for folks like us." The woman poured some tea into a cup and Iroh's face lit up. His tea, it's sad to say, had gotten wet and ruined.

"I completely understand. Do you think you have anymore of that tea?" Iroh just couldn't help himself. How can you pass up tea when it's sitting right there?

"Of course. I'll pour you some." The older lady brought out another cup and poured some more steaming tea into it. "Say, if it's not too rude of me to ask, what is the three of you are looking for in the village?" She asked, setting down a plate of bacon and eggs in front of each of them.

Allete looked to Iroh for permission to tell the truth. She wasn't quite sure if it was okay to tell people of the Avatar. He nodded her on. "We think that's where the Avatar is. He is supposed to teach me airbending."

The woman raised her eyebrows in surprise. "You mean there are two airbenders left?"

"Yes, and there are possibly more. I'm not sure where they would be though." Allete said, frowning. She'd never thought about the fact that there were probably more airbenders out there but she didn't know where they were.

The group ate in silence for a while. They'd run out of things to ask; therefore, they'd run out of things to say period. Zuko finished eating quickly, so he stood and walked outside. Allete was a little surprised at this. Just a few minutes ago he wanted nothing more than to be inside and now he was going outside again? It didn't make sense so she followed him, leaving the two elders to talk about things only they would understand.

"You okay?" Allete stood beside Zuko, who was leaning on the railing, watching the rain fall.

"Yeah, why?" Zuko kept looking straight ahead.

"I just thought it was strange that you would actually want to be outside. You didn't seem to like it out here only moments ago."

"I don't like the rain," Zuko said bluntly. "It only slows us down."

"You're too worried about where we're going. Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass; it's about learning to dance in the rain." Allete wasn't sure where she heard it, but it seemed appropriate.

"You want to travel in that?" Zuko raised an eyebrow and gestured to the soggy land around them.

"I wasn't talking about traveling. I was talking about you. Ever since I met you, you seemed to always be just a little tense. You wouldn't be that way if you let loose a little."

"Let loose? How am I supposed to do that?" Zuko raised his eyebrow even higher.

"Be spontaneous. Something like this. I want to dance in the rain, right now. So," Allete jumped off the steps and right into the falling water. "I will." She twirled around and opened her arms and tilted her head back, letting the rain fall over her. It felt to her that the rain washed away anything she didn't want anymore; bad memories, lies, anything. She was hoping maybe it would wash away the past few days.

Zuko watched her and couldn't help the smile that began to creep onto his mouth. Allete looked up at him and smiled back. "Now it's your turn." She had to shout over the sound of the raindrops hitting the tin roof.

"You're crazy." Zuko said shaking his head, but sauntered down the steps and into the rain anyway. He looked down at her and brushed away a piece of wet hair stuck to her cheek. He took her face in his hands and kissed her. She was a little shocked at first, but she quickly relaxed and kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Was that spontaneous enough?" he whispered pulling his head back to look Allete in the eyes.

"Yes, it was." They both smiled before Zuko gathered her up into one more kiss.

**How was it?? I was so nervous about the kiss. I kind of write my heart so this made me a little nervous. Did it make you go all giggly?? It did me. But I go all giggly over anything. Please review with your giggles.**


	10. Kidnapped

Chapter 10: A Walk

Appa landed on the soft piece of grassy land outside the city of Malia he had the last time. It had been about a week since they were run out of town and they decided it might be safe to go back for Allete now.

Sokka was the first one off. He sprinted through the gates and towards Allete's house. The other two followed.

Sokka had to stop himself from knocking the door down. He took a second and composed himself and then calmly, or as calmly as he could at the moment, knocked on the door. Allete's mother opened it and smiled.

"Allete's not here. She left with a guy and his uncle who said they knew the Avatar to find the three of you. I'm sorry." Sokka nearly fainted at the words. Luckily, Katara and Aang showed up right on time to catch him.

"What's going on?" Aang was curious.

"Allete… gone… guy." Sokka stumbled over the words. He was slowly making his way out of shock and sinking into a deep depression.

"Did she say who she was leaving with?" Katara asked while struggling to get her brother back into a standing position.

"It was all written in a note. Let me just let you read it. Come on in." Allete's mother turned and went into a room of the house located down the hallway. The group followed her in and made themselves at home on one of the couches in the front room.

A few minutes later the note was given to Katara who read it aloud. "_Dear mom and dad, Zuko took me and we went to find Aang. I love you and don't worry I'll be fine. All my love, Allete._" Katara shook her head. She must have read it wrong. _Zuko_ took her?

Aang could tell Sokka was about to faint again. The thought of Allete being taken by Zuko made him nervous himself. He stood with Sokka. "I think we should go find her then. Thank you for your help."

Katara handed the note back to Allete's mother and thanked her as well. The woman smiled and showed the group out. "When you see her next, tell her I love her!" she called before shutting the door.

"Zuko took her? What? How could this happen?" Sokka was on the verge of absolute fury. "I swear, when I see that stupid prince again…" He wasn't sure what exactly he would do, but it would be bad and possibly deadly.

"I wonder if he knew she was an airbender. Maybe he's using her for bait." Aang was just as confused as Sokka.

"Whatever the reason is, we have to find her." Katara took the reins and led Appa up into the sky. The other two were in too much shock to be leading an animal the size of Appa anywhere. "If they were looking for us, our best bet is to head back towards that town." So they did.

"Have you seen a little bald kid with arrows on his head? He would be traveling with a boy and girl in blue." Zuko was talking to a shop owner who was currently shaking his head.

"Not for a few days. He came in here a while ago, but I haven't seen him since." Zuko sighed. They'd gotten that answer about seven times already, but Allete insisted on checking every store.

They left the shop and Allete started to move on to the next one. Zuko grabbed her hand. "We've checked almost every store in the town. I'm saying he's gone. And besides, I'm getting tired of explaining the same kid to every one here." Zuko tried to explain.

"Then I'll talk this time. Zuko please." Allete dragged a still whining Zuko into the next building. He just rolled his eyes. Luckily, it was an inn. Zuko could see about getting a room while they were there.

Allete went through the procedure and, just as Zuko knew he would, the clerk hadn't seen the Avatar in days. On the bright side, they did manage to get a room and Allete decided to stop trying after that one.

They brought their bags into the room and were surprised to find there were only two beds. Allete looked at Zuko who looked at Iroh who turned away from them both and sat his things on one of the beds. Zuko rolled his eyes and dropped his things onto the floor. Allete smiled, crashing on the bed.

"Don't tell me you're going to bed now. Come on, we're going for a walk." Zuko grabbed her hand and pulled her from the bed. Iroh arched an eyebrow. He'd never heard his nephew _suggest_ a walk. He liked what this girl did to the prince.

"Where are we going?" Allete asked, closing the door behind her.

"I don't know. I don't care. I just wanted to get out. Are you hungry?"

"Not really. Let's just, I don't know, look around."

Zuko was still holding Allete's hand. They noticed it about the same time, both glancing down at their fingers still laced together. Allete was perfectly content to leave them that way, but Zuko, she was afraid, would think differently. To her surprise he just smiled and held his head a little higher. They were, after all, "dating" now. He figured that's what was expected of him.

"Is there anything in particular you—" Allete cut him off, mid-sentence, to run over to a shop they hadn't made it to earlier that day.

Zuko followed her in and watched. It amazed him to watch her picking through different pieces of clothing and jewelry. An orange dress soon caught her eye. The yellow beading swirled down the dress to the hem that would hit Allete a little bellow the knees. It was no doubt special, very elegant. She had no use for it, but she loved it anyway. Airbenders wore orange and yellow. Her current wardrobe had none of the above.

"It's beautiful," she told the shop keeper, then pulled Zuko back out of the store.

"What? I was looking." Zuko stumbled out the door.

"Yeah, but I was really liking that dress and I know we couldn't get it so I thought it was best that we get out of there." Allete looked longingly back at the store with the dress. Zuko smiled at her.

"Then maybe we should just stay out of the shops and stay out here." Zuko took her hand again and they wound their way through the streets.

The sun was beginning to settle below the horizon and once again casting that special light on Allete's hair. The copper color really was turning into his favorite. Of course, Zuko wanted to touch it, and this time, he did.

They'd been walking and talking for a while and now and Zuko was beginning to get a strange feeling about where they were. It was now completely dark except for the street lamps lining the streets. He wasn't wholly sure he knew where he was anymore. Allete was getting the same feeling.

"Zuko, do you know how to get back to the inn? I stopped paying attention to where we'd been a while ago." Allete looked at him anxiously, worry colored her voice.

"We can show you to wherever you need to go." The two turned around to face the gruff voice: three tough looking men.

"That's okay. We're fine," Zuko stated, slightly irritated.

"We weren't talking to you, though. We were talking to the lady." One of the men walked forward and casually draped his arm over her shoulders.

Allete smiled uneasily. "As he said, we're fine." Zuko stepped between the man and Allete. He shoved the man back in line with his friends. The guy just stood there, smiling smugly.

"Keep your hands off of her." Zuko said through clenched teeth.

"Boy, I'd advise you to watch your mouth the next time we happen to come in contact. And watch your back." It took everything Zuko had to keep from setting these guys on fire, but he was there to protect Allete. Showing these guys he was a firebender would only get them in even more trouble.

"And you, pretty lady," a different guy said, stepping forward and, again, got a little too close to Allete. "better do the same."

Zuko growled and pulled Allete away from the men. They walked quickly away and back in the general direction of the inn.

"Apparently, a walk wasn't a good idea." Allete glancing back once more, uneasily, at the guys.

"Apparently not. We're getting out of here as soon as we can." Zuko's grip tightened around her shoulders.

They made it back to the room and Zuko just laid out his sleeping back and plopped down, folding his arms across his chest. Iroh kept his mouth shut. He could probably find out anything he needed to know from Allete later. Right now he wouldn't bother the already bothered prince.

Allete's boredom was growing at a rapid pace as she sat watching Zuko check every single spot in the woods that he had deemed as a potential spot for hiding. They'd left the town quickly the following morning. She wasn't sure why Zuko was so afraid of those guys, she was pretty sure he could have taken them, but he continued to act more paranoid than she'd ever seen him.

"I think this place is safe," he finally decided, moving from behind one of the trees he'd been checking.

"You're beginning to sound paranoid," Allete teased. Uncle Iroh laughed as he set up the teapot.

Zuko frowned at the comment. He was not paranoid. He was only being careful.

"But since it's safe," she continued, "I'm going to go down to the stream. We need water. I'll be back." Allete picked up a bucket and started toward the sound of the water.

"But I haven't checked down there yet!" Zuko called after her.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," Allete called back, swinging the pail around her finger.

She sat down by the water. It was clear and she could see tiny little fish swimming around. She carefully dipped the edge of the bucket into the water so fish wouldn't get in. Slowly water began to seep in. This was going to take longer than she'd expected. She settled herself on the banks and watched as the bucket began to fill.

Out of nowhere she heard a sound behind her. All of the sudden, a hand covered her mouth and an arm wrapped around her waist. She was dragged into the woods, leaving her bucket where it lay.


	11. A Taste of Reality

Chapter 11: A Taste of Reality

**I told you it would be every night. Even though it's about 11:30 p.m. **

It had been at least five minutes since Allete went down to the stream. Zuko knew it didn't take that long to fill up a bucket. He was beginning to get nervous and had taken to pacing around the fire.

"She's fine Prince Zuko. Give her some time. I'm sure she'll be back any minute now," Iroh tried to calm the prince down, while pouring himself another cup of tea made from the new supply he'd managed to buy.

"No, Uncle. When we were at the village, there were some guys that caused her a little trouble. I don't want them finding us. I've been having the strange feeling lately that we're being followed. I don't want to take any chances." Zuko picked up his swords and headed toward the stream. He'd waited long enough. Iroh sighed and watched his nephew leave. He could be so paranoid at times.

"Allete! Allete, what are you doing that's taking you so long?" Zuko called looking around the forest. He reached the stream and saw a bucket lying in the water, but no Allete.

"Allete, tell me you're around here somewhere! Allete, come on, this isn't funny!" Zuko checked behind every tree. He still couldn't find her. Then a thought struck him. _I was right. Those guys were following us. They've got her._

Zuko ran back to camp. "They've got her, Uncle. I have to go get her."

"Prince Zuko, are you sure?" Iroh really didn't want his nephew running back into that town. He would probably kill those guys whether they had her or not.

"Yes, I'm sure. I'll be back." And with that, Zuko took off back towards town.

He reached the city limits with swords in hand and flames dancing. He barged into the first shop he saw. "I'm looking for three guys; tall, mean, trouble makers. Do you know where I would find them?"

The shop keeper looked terrified. He wasn't about to put up a fight with an angry guy with swords. "I know who you're talking about. They're probably back in the darker part of town."

Just as he the store owner said, he found them sitting on boxes in one of the back alleys of town.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't our jealous little friend with the scar." One of the men stood up and took a step toward Zuko. "Where's your pretty girlfriend?"

Zuko hurled a fire ball at the man's head. "What did you do with her?"

"So, we've got a firebender in our midst," the guy smirked, as he dodged the blast.

"Answer the question," Zuko growled, grabbing the man by the throat and shoving him into a wall. "What did you do with her?"

"Look, you freak, I haven't seen her."

"You're lying."

"No, but what would you do to me if I was?" the man asked, sneering at Zuko's rage.

"Would you like a demonstration?"

Allete struggled against her attacker; kicking, punching, anything she could do to get away. Eventually, the guy stopped and turned her around.

"Sokka?" Allete was more confused than ever. What reason would he have for kidnapping her? "What are you doing?"

"Saving you," he stated bluntly.

"From what? I'm fine," Allete tried to get away again.

Sokka held her firmly in place. "From Zuko. He kidnapped you, so now we're getting you back." He led her to where Aang and Katara were waiting on Appa.

"What? He didn't kidnap me. He was taking me to you guys. He said he knew you," Allete explained while still struggling to break free of Sokka's grasp.

Sokka looked to Katara and Aang. "So it's official. He was using her as bait to get to us. I'm telling you; as soon as I find him again it'll be on."

"What? No he wasn't. He wouldn't use me for anything."

"Either that or he was planning on coming with her and saying he'd changed. Then he could be with us and get Aang when no one expected it," Katara suggested.

"Change? Change from what?" Allete's confusion was getting worse.

"Either way he was using her. Poor girl," Aang concluded, hanging his head out of sympathy.

Allete had the strangest feeling no one was listening to her. "Would somebody please explain to me what's going on here!!" she finally shouted over the other's voices.

"What has he told you, Allete?" Sokka was shocked at the girl's ignorance of the situation.

"He told me he was a firebender and that he was prince of the Fire Nation and that he and the Avatar had had 'encounters,' but that's about it. Is there more?"

"Did he explain much about those 'encounters'?" Aang asked, helping Allete onto Appa's saddle.

"No, come to think of it. He just said the two of you had some." Allete thought back to the day she'd asked him about it.

"Please believe what I'm about to tell you. He's been chasing us. He's been trying to capture me. It has something to do with his honor and getting his throne back. He's not a good person." Aang looked his fellow airbender right in the eyes from where he was steering Appa into the sky.

"Well, maybe he's changed since you saw him last. He seemed pretty nice to me. And how is wanting honor and a throne making him a bad person?" Allete tried her best to defend Zuko.

"Do you not know of the war or what the Fire Nation has done? Have you not seen the destruction they have caused?" Katara was worried about this girl.

"I haven't seen it personally, but I've heard stories about what some Fire Nation troops did to a village near our island. I think it's awful, but Zuko didn't do it. In fact, the Fire Nation didn't do it. Some of the evil benders did, but that doesn't make the whole nation evil. That doesn't make Zuko evil… does it?" Allete was slowly beginning to think these guys were right.

"He wants to capture Aang and take him back to the Fire Nation. He wants to be Firelord some day of the monster of a country. That's pretty evil. I've seen him fight. He would destroy anything in his path," Sokka sounded sincere.

Allete still wasn't sure though. She didn't want to think of Zuko as evil. He had never shown any signs of anything but kindness, and maybe a little ill-temperedness, to her. She watched the ground below them for a while until they passed over the top of the village she'd stayed in the night before.

She gasped at what she saw. There was Zuko hurling fire and spinning swords at the three guys from the evening before with no intention of stopping. She was afraid for him, being out numbered like he was. But more, she was afraid_ of_ him. She'd never seen him this furious.

Tears welled up in her eyes. _Maybe they're right. Maybe he is a monster._ Sokka placed his arms around her shoulders and watched the fight with her.

Zuko was fighting harder than he ever had before. In the back of his mind, he wasn't fighting people; he was fighting the guilt he felt. What had he gotten this girl into? If he'd made her stay at her home she wouldn't be in the mess she was in right now. He had let his personal feelings get in the way, and she was paying for it.

He was soon beginning to think that maybe these guys were telling the truth and they didn't have her. But the memory of one of the guys putting his arm around her made his skin crawl and he fought back even harder. The thought of _anyone_ touching Allete like that other than himself made him sick.

That was until the men stopped fighting long enough to look up at a giant creature pass by over head. Zuko looked too, and there was Allete, riding on Appa, and the Water Tribe boy with his arm around her.


	12. Because I Care

Chapter 12: Because I Care

**You are just pure genius, Mystery! Your powers of perception never cease to amaze me!! Seriously. I'm really glad you are following the story like this. I hope I don't disappoint you. **

Zuko took off running as fast as he could back to the camp site. For one thing, he didn't want those guys killing him since they were miraculously telling the truth. For another, he was getting Allete back.

"Uncle Iroh, we're chasing the Avatar," Zuko declared, gathering his things and stuffing them into bags.

"There's no surprise there. Is there a particular reason? And where's Allete?"

"The Avatar has her. I saw his group flying over head with her. We have to go after her. Come on." Zuko gave a bag to his uncle and jogged on ahead.

"Zuko, wait. Think about what you're doing." Iroh reached out to stop his nephew.

"Uncle, we really don't have time for this." Zuko pulled away from his uncle's hold on him.

"Make time. This is important. Who are you going after? Allete, or the Avatar?" Iroh looked Zuko straight in the eye.

"Same difference." Zuko shrugged, turning his head.

"No, it's not. Maybe you're headed in the same direction for both, but there are two people waiting once you get there. Who do you want more?"

Zuko thought about what his uncle said. Who did he want more? Capturing the Avatar would only tear down anything he and Allete had. _Maybe she means more to me than restoring my honor. Maybe I love her too much to let her go. Wait, love? Do I love her? _The reality of how strong the word was hit him like a ton of bricks. _Yes, I think I do. And she'll never feel the same way if I capture the Avatar._

"And why are you chasing Allete if she was going to wind up with them anyway?" Iroh asked yet another question of great importance.

"Because I---" Zuko couldn't say it aloud. "I . . . I care about her. I can't let her go off with them without me. I… I need her," Zuko's head was spinning from the confession. It was a lot for him to take in all at once.

Iroh smiled. He'd already known that for quite some time, but it was nice to hear him say it. "Well then, let's go find her."

Allete stumbled off Appa and found a seat, rather abruptly, on the ground. She wasn't a ditz by any means, but things on her little island never happened quite as quickly as they'd been with Zuko or with Aang and his friends. She'd fallen in love with someone, been betrayed by that same someone, found out about her lost heritage, and met the Avatar all within about a week. Saying her head spun would be horribly understated.

She was still crying. She wasn't bawling like a baby, in fact she wasn't making any noise at all. It was more like she'd sprung a leak and she couldn't stop it up. But no matter how much she tried, she just couldn't seem to stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks.

She didn't even know why she was crying. Maybe it was because she was still in a little shock from what she'd just heard and seen about Zuko, or maybe it was because all the past emotional events finally caught up to her. At the moment, however, she could honestly say she didn't care what the _reason_ was. She mainly just wanted a solution to all her problems, and as far as she could tell, Aang pretty much was that solution.

"Are you okay?" Sokka came over and placed his hand on her back.

"You didn't have to tell me about any of that you know. I could have lived my life completely oblivious to all of it and it wouldn't have fazed me one bit. Zuko was a good person to _me_ and he was nice to _me_. I never had to know about all the things he's _done_." Allete's confusion and gloom was subsiding, but anger was taking their place.

"Think about it, Allete. You needed to know. Wouldn't you rather find out from us than from him?"

"He wouldn't have to tell me either. Like I said, what if he changed?"

"He hasn't. People like Zuko are incapable of change."

"You don't know that!" Allete voice had risen to a shriek, and it continued to stay that way. "You haven't seen him for weeks! You don't know what people are capable of! You want him to be bad forever so you can be my shoulder to cry on! Or maybe it's because you want to get revenge about something!"

Sokka looked hurt; really and truly hurt.

"I'm sorry. I just-" Allete couldn't finish her own sentence. She didn't know what had come over her, but something had.

"It's okay. Everyone needs to be able to just snap every once in a while." Sokka understood where her frantic screams had come from. There had been times when he wished he could just blow up on someone, and usually Aunt Wu's village is the first time that comes to his mind.

Aang and Katara had been staying at a safe distance through the whole ordeal, but Allete had seemed to calm down some, so they decided to join Sokka.

"Maybe you'll feel better if you get your mind off of it. We could all use some physical activity. I can start you out on some basics," Aang suggested. Allete nodded. She did feel the need to move in some way. Maybe it would get her mind off of him; that no good, dirty, rotten- no, she wouldn't think that way. She wouldn't think anything about him anymore. He apparently wasn't as good a guy as she'd thought. She prayed she would eventually get over him. Eventually.

"What are you doing?" Sokka asked Allete from where he was stretching his arms a few feet away? She was looking at different tree limbs; inspecting height, checking strength.

"I'm trying to find a barre, something I can hold on to," Allete said, comparing one particular limb to the height of her hip. "I think this one will do."

Sokka raised an eyebrow. "What do you need something to hold on to for?"

"So I can warm up. You stretch, I plie," Allete explained pulled off her light jacket to reveal her warm-up clothes consisting of a baggy pair a satin pants and a tighter fitting leotard. She flipped her head up side down and gathered her hair into a ponytail, securing it with a band from her wrist.

"Plie?" Sokka snorted. "Okay, that's fine. You dance around and I'll be over here doing some real warm-ups. You know, something that requires effort."

Allete stopped to look at Sokka. She thought about telling him to come over and do everything she had to do in a class and then tell her about effort. But instead she shook her head and picked up right where she left off, trying to keep her focus straight and not on that stupid prince.

Sokka couldn't help but watch for at least another second or two. She was so graceful and poised. He quickly went back to what he was doing though, grumbling about how it couldn't be that hard.

He kept up his mumbling and complaining for another five minutes and finally Allete just couldn't take it anymore. "If it's so hard, why don't you come over here and do it!" She exploded all over him. He could be so infuriating.

"Fine, I will," Sokka huffed marching over to where Allete stood.

"Bring your foot up so that it rests right in front of your knee," Allete said, demonstrating.

"Like this?" Sokka questioned. "It feels funny."

"It would feel even funnier if it were completely correct." Allete bent down and turned out the foot Sokka was standing on, causing him to loose balance, barely saving himself from a fall and a dent in his pride. Then she moved to the leg that was bent to the side. She moved the knee out and lowered his hip. Sokka yelped at the momentary discomfort. She brought his arm from his side and positioned it out to the side with the elbow slightly bent. "That's how it's supposed to feel."

"Can I put my foot down now?"

"Tired are we? No, you can't. Instead, extend it out behind you as high as you can, keeping your body erect and your knee straight."

Sokka huffed again and did as he was told, or as best he could. Allete had some more fixing to do. She lowered his hip once again and straightened his knee more. She glanced at Sokka's face, who had one eye squeezed shut and his mouth pouted to one side, and smiled. Maybe now he wouldn't think it was so hard.

"Come on Sokka, it can't be that awful can it?" Allete teased pushing his leg up even higher behind him. Sokka yelped and nodded quickly. She put down his leg and smirked. "Next time, I'd advise you not to mess with a dancer. We can always mess better."

Sokka growled and stomped off, muttering something about how he couldn't believe he ever fell for her and how dancers were definitely off the list of possible girlfriends.

With a victorious smile placed on her face, Allete turned back to the "barre" and began to work again until Aang called her over. "Go ahead and have a seat, I guess. I'll explain the technique before we start training. But, uh, I've never really taught anything to anyone so, uh, I guess I'll wing it," Aang smiled brightly. Allete took a seat on the grass. Aang straightened up, puffing his chest out to make himself look a little bit bigger, and began to talk.

"Now, the art of airbending consists of circular motions, much like air currents. It's also more defense than offense. That doesn't bother you does it?" Aang was pacing the ground in front of where Allete sat cross-legged watching and trying her best to pay attention to what her teacher was saying.

"No… no it doesn't," she said blinking. Why would it bother her? Head on attacks never seemed to fit her.

"Okay good. Well, that was a little less explaining that I had originally thought, so if you will stand up, I'll teach you some basic movements." Aang gestured for her to stand and she did so. Aang showed her one of the basic movements and Allete followed his steps.

"Did I do it right?" she asked a little unsure.

"Perfect." Aang was a little impressed with her level of perfection actually, so he skipped a few steps and showed her a move on a higher level. "Try that. It might be a little trickier though."

Allete copied Aang's movements flawlessly. His eyebrows raised slightly at her abilities. " Wow. That was really good. You're moving really fast."

Allete beamed. She was so happy it was working out for her. And things continued to work out for her the whole evening, much to her surprise. She made it to an high-beginner level within about three or four hours. (That's pretty fast considering Aang made it in about two when he was learning.) Things had been having a way of screwing up with her the past two weeks and she knew it was only a matter of time before this did too, but she was enjoying it while it lasted. And for the first time in a while, she drifted off to sleep without any trace of how hard she was falling for Zuko. But she never could decide whether that was a good thing… or bad.


	13. You Lied

Chapter 13: You Lied

**I love reviews. I really do. I thank you all. And you know Mystery, I was trying to tell her the same thing. She just wouldn't listen to me. And she continued to not listening on into this chapter too. Oops, I hope I didn't say too much. Just read. **

Zuko rubbed his eyes, tired from being on the move almost every minute of the day for at least a week. It was hard work trying to keep up with a flying animal when you were on foot. He'd managed to acquire an ostrich-horse (he kept telling himself he DID NOT steal, it was more like borrowing) which sped them up a little, but they were still behind. He was determined, however, and knew eventually his uncle and he would catch up.

He wasn't sure what kept him going. Whether it was his love for Allete, his worry for Allete, or his jealousy over the Water Tribe boy who had Allete he wasn't sure, but whatever it was it had Allete's name in it. In a way, that bothered him. She had such a hold over his heart and his emotions. It was a scary thought for him.

He spent most of his time thinking about her, daydreaming about her. He didn't daydream, never had, and told himself he never would. But once again, it was that girl. Zuko had come to blame most things he thought he'd never do on "that girl". And on one hand, that agitated him to his very core to think about how much one girl could do. On the other, it thrilled him. He'd always loved challenges and Allete, doing the things she did, was definitely a challenge.

It was thoughts like these, the kind that trailed off into one subject after another, that had Zuko's mind captured currently. He was snapped out of his daze by his uncle. "Prince Zuko, there is smoke in the distance. Do you think that is them?"

"Yes, probably. Stay here. I need to go on foot." Zuko whispered, climbing down off the animal.

"Are you sure you don't need me? Maybe you should have some tea before you go to clear your mind and center your focus," Iroh climbed down too and tied the ostrich-horse to a tree.

"I don't need tea. I need to go find her and bring her back as quickly as possible. Someone needs to stay with our ostrich-horse. I'll be back," Zuko turned tiptoeing into the forest towards the smoke.

Iroh sighed and put on a pot of water. Maybe his nephew didn't want any, but Iroh was always up for tea. While he waited for the water to come to a boil, his mind also wandered into thoughts of Zuko. _Please don't ruin this Zuko, _he thought. _Please keep your head._

The fire in front of her grew and shrunk in rhythm, its dance casting shadows onto the trees of the dimly lit forest. Allete stared into it, her mind wondering to thoughts of Zuko. She hadn't thought much about him all day, but fires always made her miss him.

Her gaze shifted from the fire to Sokka, who had just started in with another tune. For some reason, he had been bursting out in song off and on all evening. The whole group seemed peppier than usual. Not to say they weren't always peppy, because they were, but tonight was especially peppy.

Sokka cut off in the middle of his song. "Does anyone want to hear a story?" he asked, dropping his voice and leaning into fire.

"No, Sokka. I think we're good on stories," Katara laughed, knowing her brother was no good at storytelling.

"I don't know, Katara. I think a story might be kind of fun. Is it scary?" Allete said looking at Katara. Katara's eyes got bigger and she shook her head, a look that seemed to say "You're going to regret saying anything." Allete shrugged it off. His stories couldn't be that bad.

"Oh it's scary all right. The scariest story you've ever heard. You might want to come sit by me, just in case you get scared," Sokka scooted over on his log and patted the seat next to him.

"Ha ha, very funny. I'll be fine," Allete was almost positive Sokka had gotten over his crush the day she made him do ballet.

"Fine, suit yourself," Sokka shrugged his shoulders, a little let down that she didn't come over. "One night, on a night much like this, a group of friends decided to go off into the woods. They would soon come to find out that was a very bad idea. While they were walking, they kept hearing noises; leaves rustling, twigs breaking." Allete's heart skipped a beat when as soon as the words came out of Sokka's mouth, a nearby bush rattled. Allete decided maybe sitting next to Sokka wasn't such a bad idea. She hurried over and sat down.

"They continued to press on; however, and soon they were in the heart of the forest, lost," Sokka continued. "They were starting to get frantic, and began running. 'Why don't we just stay here for the night? We can look again in the morning when everything is light,' one boy said. The group agreed and lay down in the forest. They were almost asleep when they started to hear voices and what sounded like people walking in the forest. They kept hearing the noises getting louder and louder until all of the sudden---" Sokka was cut off when out of nowhere Zuko popped out of the woods. The group erupted in screams and Allete grabbed hold of Sokka's arm. Sokka grabbed back.

Zuko moved into the firelight and they could see just who it was. Katara jumped up, her water already forming into whip, ready to use on him if need be.

"I'm not here to attack anyone. I just want to talk to Allete," Zuko explained, putting his hands up. Allete looked to Aang, who gave her a nod of approval. She joined Zuko and they walked out of earshot of the rest of the group.

"What?" she snapped, folding her arms across her chest.

"I came to get you back. I couldn't stand being away from you," Zuko said, a little hurt by her sharp tone.

"You lied Zuko. Why didn't you tell me what you had done?"

"Because you would hate me."

"I would not have hated you. I couldn't hate you," Allete was appalled that he would think she could actually hate him.

"Well, I didn't know that. I'm sorry. I still want you back though."

"Sorry to tell you but I'm afraid that just won't work. I need to learn airbending. You can join us if you want."

Zuko paused, weighing his options. "I need to capture the Avatar to get my honor back. I have to."

"Oh please, Zuko. That's ridiculous."

"I'm ridiculous? Why don't you just come with me now? You can learn airbending later."

"No, you'll capture him. You said it yourself. It's now or never."

"True, but I don't think I can join him."

"Zuko, that's just stupid. You're letting me go for some stupid honor," Allete's voice rose in volume slightly. She was getting pretty ill with his illogical reasoning.

"No, you're being stupid. Airbending is not that important. Just stick to dancing. It's what you do best," he replied.

"Well, fine then. If you can't join him, you can't have me," Allete's rage was building. This guy was nuts.

"If that's how you want it, fine. I'll just go," Zuko was getting pretty mad as well.

"You do that. But just so you know, I would have more respect for you if you had told me. It would have been so much easier to leave you," she made sure to put extra ice in her tone. She wanted him to hurt just as much as she was.

Zuko turned on his heels and stormed out of the woods, heading back to where his uncle was. Allete watched him disappear, unable to stop herself from crying. She just fell to her knees and let it happen.

Once Zuko was out of her sight and hearing, he stopped and leaned against a tree. The tears that had stung his eyes began to slide silently down his face. _Brilliant,_ he thought. _Now I'm crying over her. _


	14. Reconnecting

Chapter 14: Reconnecting

**Okay, last chapter. Finally. I hope you like it!!**

A few months had passed since Allete turned him away. He'd left cursing himself for ever getting involved with her, but what he didn't know was that he was leaving with her heart. She loved him with everything she had, but she couldn't betray her friends.

Thoughts of him never fluttered through her head, no, they were there every minute of every day. Over time, she tried to get rid of them, but they were always there to plague her and follow her.

And they were plaguing her now as she checked over her packing list in her room back on her little island. Allete was now a master airbender, of course. She had the tattoos to prove it. Smiling, she thought back to the day she'd gotten them, Aang arguing with her over their placement. He realized the tradition of putting the arrows on the head, arms, and legs, but she refused to lose one strand of hair. They, instead, wrapped down her arms and legs only.

After her training was complete, Allete went back home for a while, just as she promised her parents she would, but that was short-lived. She soon got a message from her friends in Ba Sing Se saying they needed her help. There, she met Toph, Aang's earthbending teacher. She blinked back tears as she remembered what happened in the crystal caverns.

She watched from a distance as Zuko made his choice. It would have been better if he hadn't seen her; she could better understand him doing what he did if he didn't know she was there and just lost it. But he saw her. They made eye contact. It was _that_ thought that made her heart, which he now held in his care, ache.

She had been forced to fight him. Sure he never deliberately attacked her, or he tried not to, but she had to protect Aang and that meant fighting Zuko. But it didn't matter. Her help didn't matter. She still watched as the girl Zuko was with, apparently his sister she would come to find out, brought her teacher down.

Over time, Aang and Allete had gotten close, very close. Aang became more than her teacher, he was her friend, possibly even her best friend, and Allete watched him go down. As she airbended herself up out of the caverns, she shot a look of pure hatred towards Zuko. She saw hatred in his face as well, but she also saw agony for something she wasn't quite sure of. Behind those stone cold eyes she saw a lost, confused boy, and she ached for him, but he'd made his choice.

Allete shook her head banishing any thoughts of the prince. She'd also been called out to help on the day of black sun. When that didn't work out the way they'd originally thought, she headed home to pack some clothes, they were sufficiently more orange now, and head back to meet them at the Western Air Temple. With her new glider, which she'd gotten when Aang took her to the Northern Air Temple as part of her training and taught her to fly, moving from place to place quickly wasn't a problem.

She slung her bag over her back and gripped her glider. Over time, her parents had gotten used to sharing their daughter with the rest of the world, but of course they still missed her terribly. She gave them both goodbye kisses and headed out the door, out on another adventure.

Allete skidded to a stop on the marble floor of one of the temple buildings. Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph looked up from where they had been talking about something that appeared to be important.

"Hi guys!!!" Allete rushed over to Aang and gathered him into a bear hug. She hadn't seen him in a long time. "What's going on? It seems to be of high importance."

"Your boyfriend stopped by," Sokka said nonchalantly.

"Sokka! Can you get any ruder?" Katara exclaimed, clamping a hand over her brother's mouth.

"Really? What did he want? Here to try to capture you again?" Allete asked raising an eyebrow. "And he's not by any means my boyfriend," she stated firmly, giving Sokka an unamused glare.

"Actually," Aang chimed in, "he wanted to join us. We turned him down."

Allete raised both eyebrows this time in shock. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, they are. I think they're crazy. Aang needs a firebending teacher and one shows up and they turn him away. Crazy," Toph's voice echoed off the temple walls, and she stormed off out of the room.

Allete shrugged. She didn't really want to hear about Zuko… at all. She thought about him enough as it was. She changed the subject instead. "Can't a girl get a room around here?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," Sokka snapped to attention and showed her to one of the many rooms in the temple.

Sometime after supper that night, Toph finally popped, more like busted, through one of the temple walls.

"He firebended at you?!" Aang screeched pulling Toph from the rubble. Allete put her hands over her face and drowned out the rest of the conversation with thoughts of the prince. She sat down on the edge of the fountain where Toph was soaking her feet and sighed, almost growled.

How could guy be so evil? Burning Toph? What purpose would that serve? She sighed again, still shocked at the sheer stupidity of the boy, when all of the sudden a huge boom exploded above them.

Allete looked up to see Zuko fighting with a big guy twice his size. The huge muscled man seemed determined to blow up the building she and her friends were on. She was dragged by Sokka behind one of the walls out of sight right after watching Zuko slide off edge of one of the levels of the temple.

"Who is that guy?" she asked, obviously lost and amazed by the man's power.

"Combustion man. Your boy- I mean Zuko sent him to kill Aang," Sokka said taking a peak from behind the wall.

Allete closed her eyes. What was his problem?

"I can't get an angle on him from here," Katara said examining the distance between them and the killer.

"I can!" Sokka pulled his boomerang from out of his bag and angled it so that it would curve up to hit Combustion Man right between the eyes.

Running from behind the safety of the wall, almost positive the hit knocked the man cold, the group was unfortunate to find the assassin getting right back up, preparing to send the final blow to the hanging building. The group braced themselves for the fall, but instead of it destroying them, the blast backfired. Allete watched as the building exploded along with Combustion Man, sending blasts and chunks of burning stone every which way.

Zuko climbed back on top of the floor and walked toward the group. Allete stood her ground, not entirely prepared to face the prince.

"As weird as it is to say it, thanks Zuko," Aang said amazed.

Once again, Allete got lost in her thoughts. This time they were more panicky; thoughts along the lines of 'What if he joins us' and 'Why is he here' and 'How will I be able to live with him here'.

She also thought about how handsome he was, and how long his hair had gotten. It was about that length at Ba Sing Se, but she tried her best to forget that day. As usual, her thoughts of him had kept her from paying attention to what was being said, and she was lost when she heard Aang say her name.

"What? I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention," she apologized, smiling shyly.

"It's up to you to let him join us. We've all agreed. Your call. We completely understand if it's just too hard for you," Aang gave her a sympathetic look.

She almost said, "No, absolutely not," right then and there, but the look in Zuko's eyes stopped her. It was a look of hope and kindness. He_ had_ changed. She took a deep breath and said, "Look, you need a firebending teacher. Who am I to let personal feelings get in the way of the fate of the world?"

Zuko's eyes lit up. "I promise, I won't let you down!"

The group, except for Allete left him. He stared at her for all of three seconds before his shame got the best of him. He cast his gaze down and away. Allete walked up to him and with a curled finger under his chin, lifted his head to look her in the eyes. Her hand ran up his cheek to cradle it in the palm of her hand. She stared him deep in the eyes until he once again had to avoid her stare and closed his, content in her touch.

Allete pulled her hand away. Zuko never saw it when she drew her hand back. All he felt was the hand connecting with his jaw again with a loud smack. His eyes snapped open and he stared at her, a little taken aback with the fact she just slapped him. _Although I really deserved that._

She stared back, then grabbed his shirt collar, pulled him close to her, and planted a big kiss on his unsuspecting mouth. Allete had wanted to do that for such a long time. She missed how warm he was, how warm his kisses were. She fell in love all over again.

Zuko was shocked at first, his mouth handing open slightly. Then let go remembering their first kiss. She _was_ spontaneous after all. That's one thing he loved about her. It was something you come to expect. His choice of questions after they pulled away only proved how long he'd been away from her spontaneity. "You slap me... and then you kiss me? I don't get it?"

"I slapped you because you're a jerk and you deserved it. I kissed you because I love you anyway."

"You love me? Still? After every stupid mistake I've ever made, you still love me?" Zuko was shocked to say the least.

"Yes, I still love you. It's called forgiveness."

"Thank you. I need that. I'm sorry, for everything, by the way. I know I never got a chance to explain."

"You're welcome. I'm proud of you. Joining the Avatar was the smartest think I've ever seen you do, and I'm perfectly content to pick up where we left off, but first we need to have a talk. You have lots of explaining to do," Allete told him, pulling him along with her to walk along the corridors. Zuko just smiled and followed.

A few days later, after their little talk, things between them could never have been better. Currently, Zuko sat watching Allete and Aang spar. His mind drifted off, watching her jump and turn, to the ballet when he first saw her.

He thought about how lucky he was to have her. She was his whole world now. Nothing had ever mattered to him more than she did at this moment. And the best part was her copper hair was his to touch any time he wanted. And her beautiful smile was his to see anytime he wanted. And right on cue, she flashed him one as she passed by. He smiled back, really and truly happy.

Sokka came and plopped down beside Zuko, breaking his thoughts, or daydreams as he'd come to call them, He was watching Allete as well. They stared in silence for while until Sokka broke it. "It's like she's not even fighting. It's like she's, I don't know, dancing on the air."

Zuko thought about it, really pondering Sokka's statement. Then a soft smile crept onto his lips. "Yeah," he said nodding slightly. "Yeah, it is."

**So there it is!! I hope it was satisfied everyone. And okay so I lied, Toph does show up. Although, when I said she wouldn't show up I wasn't quite sure how I was going to end the story. And I wasn't quite sure the exact lines said in some scenes, and I was too lazy to go look it up, so I just made Allete think about things. Like I said I hope you liked it. It was fun to write and even more fun to see what everyone said about it. I think it went over well for my first ever completed multi-chapter story. But that's all for now. See you all later and don't forget to check out my buddy Arcole's stuff. She's currently writing an awesome Zuko/Toph story (Land of Fire and Stone) so check her out. Until next time, Daisy. **


	15. Just So Ya Know

Dear Readers,

Dear Readers,

Hey guys!! So I just wanted to put this up here so that maybe the people subscribed to this story would see this and go check it out. I put up a story called Prodigy. It gives a little background to why Azula is the way she is. I thought it was some of my best work yet, but I haven't been getting many hits on it… or if I have no one's really reviewed. So, please, go R&R!! I need the feed back here!!

Also, I'm working on another one. It's in the thinking process. I don't want to give too much away, but I think it'll be really funny once I'm done. Oh, and if you get a chance, Arcole is writing a sequel to her fic Land of Fire and Stone. So if you haven't checked it out do so!! But read the first one… first. Sorry, she doesn't publicize me, so I publicize her and guilt her for it later. She's a meanie…

But anyway, go check those out please!!

Thanks!

Xoxo,

Daisy S.


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